Competitive viability assessment
Threat of new competition As with any new technology, 3D printing will encounter competition among vendors and across all tiers of quality. As the product becomes easier to duplicate and manufacture and as equipment costs go down, the number of competitors will increase. *3D printing can avoid competition by patenting new technologies *Quality and cost of products will differentiate 3D printers in the market *Depending on the vendors, brand equity can increase competitive difficulty Threat of substitute products or services There are not many substitutes for 3D printing, if anything 3D printing is a substitute for physical models. However, 3D printing may have substitution products such as projectors or holograms in the future. Buyers may eventually look for a more temporary solution – i.e. holograms. Relative price performance of substitute – depending on the industry 3D printing may select cheaper alternatives such as regular printing or do it yourself modeling. This threat is limited due to it’s niche characteristics. Bargaining Power of Buyers Buyers in 3D printing marketplace may exert pressure on suppliers and vendors to supply higher quality and lower cost products. Early in the evolution of the technology bargaining power will be weak, as there are limited outlets and providers of the technology. As printing technologies are able to mature, increased competition will increase buyer leverage. *Buyer concentration will be great as the opportunity to create or replicate inanimate 3D objects may be done relatively easily and inexpensively *Cost will be the driving force behind buyer bargaining power as existing channels and substitutes may be alternates to emerging 3D printing *Low buyer bargaining power may initially make the 3D printing industry more attractive for sellers because of its higher profit potential *This technology may displace some employees of buyers, as trade skills may no longer be needed in some fabrication applications *Forward integration may impact buyers as they may no longer be needed as customers build their own 3D printers or purchase equipment directly Bargaining Power of Suppliers Suppliers in marketplace may impact buyers through lower quality, higher cost, or limited availability of products. In the case of 3D printing, early bargaining power of suppliers will be strong as there may be many buyers of the technology and a limited number of suppliers. As 3D printing technologies mature, the technology innovation may cultivate more supplier channels. *Differentiating 3D printing mediums may impact technology use (i.e. proprietary plastics used in printing have scarce inputs) *Alternate inputs may impact cost and demand *The concentration of suppliers will be limited early on, but it will strengthen as the market matures *Employee solidarity will have a limited impact, as engineers are utilized over unions Intensity of competitive rivalry The intensity of competition is currently low in the 3D printing industry. The major technology players for traditional 2 dimensional printers have yet to engage heavily in the 3D printer market. It is feasible that the major technology players (HP, Canon, Xerox…etc.) will allow the market to mature and select the most superior technology, purchase that technology, and cultivate its growth through their existing distribution channels. *There is a relatively low amount of advertising in the 3D printing marketplace *Buyer and Supplier bargaining power shifts during market development and ultimately results in increased buyer power as competition intensifies *There is minimum flexibility in existing 3D printing systems *The rigidity of the technology allows for new entrants to solidify niche markets as they are identified to avoid direct competition with existing firms